Judge Juan Merchan has scheduled former President Donald Trump’s sentencing on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records for a key date in the 2024 presidential election cycle.
Trump is due to be sentenced on July 11, just days before Republicans are set to formally nominate him for president. While the convention has always been a historically significant event for any presidential contender, Trump has long hinted that he will be naming his running mate during convention week, adding to the stakes.
The charge of falsifying business records is generally a misdemeanor in New York City, though Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg charged Trump with felony counts after alleging that he falsified records in order to conceal another crime. The D.A.’s office never identified the alleged underlying crime, while Judge Juan Merchan told jurors that they did not have to agree on what the never-identified crime even was.
Bragg also used COVID-era policies to extend the statute of limitations, which had long since expired, in order to bring the case, which he pursued after both the Department of Justice and FEC declined to bring charges after conducting their own respective investigations.
Each felony count against Trump carries a maximum prison sentence of